This invention relates generally to liquid metal nuclear reactors, and more particularly to using liquid metal nuclear reactors to provide energy for the production of hydrogen in a water cracking system.
Hydrogen fuel cell powered electric vehicles are being considered as a means of decreasing mobile source emissions in large cities. However, the hydrogen used in such a vehicle is typically produced using a carbon based source which causes greenhouse emissions. For example, CO+H2O is converted to CO2+H2, with the CO2 being the waste byproduct of the process. It is known that CO2 is one of the materials that contribute to the greenhouse effect on the environment.
Producing hydrogen with a water cracking process requires large amounts of energy because the water cracking process operate at very high temperatures, in the range of about 850° C. to 950° C., to function in an efficient manner. Nuclear reactors have been considered for a low cost heat source for water cracking systems. However, nuclear reactors do not operate at the high temperatures needed for efficient operation of these water cracking systems. Liquid metal cooled nuclear reactors operate at about 550° C. and light water reactors operate at about 285° C. which are much lower than the 850° C. to 950° C. needed for an efficient water cracking system.
It would be desirable to provide a system for supplying a sufficient amount of low cost heat to efficiently operate a water cracking system in the range of about 850° C. to 950° C.